Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN Shares Bought by Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. significantly increased its stake in Werner Enterprises by 1,642.2%, owning approximately 620,855 shares valued at $18.19 million.
• Werner Enterprises reported a quarterly EPS of $0.11, surpassing analysts’ expectations, while revenue for the quarter was $753.15 million, reflecting a 1% decrease year-over-year.
• The company announced a $0.14 quarterly dividend, representing a 2.0% yield, and initiated a $5 million share buyback program as an indication of stock undervaluation.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) by 1,642.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 620,855 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 585,218 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned about 1.00% of Werner Enterprises worth $18,191,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WERN. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 163.5% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 959 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 595 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 69.7% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,176 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 15.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Crestline Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises in the fourth quarter worth $254,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises in the first quarter worth $265,000. 89.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WERN traded down $0.63 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $28.07. 101,655 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 877,759. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a twelve month low of $23.02 and a twelve month high of $42.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $28.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.28.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.06. Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 1.77% and a return on equity of 0.92%. The company had revenue of $753.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $736.09 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.17 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 6th. Werner Enterprises's payout ratio is presently 65.12%.

Werner Enterprises declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, August 11th that permits the company to buyback 5,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Werner Enterprises from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Werner Enterprises from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Werner Enterprises in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $30.43.

Werner Enterprises Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.